Fowles had 20 points and 10 rebounds for her 72nd career double-double and the Tigers (16-3, 5-0) continued their dominance of the Southeastern Conference with a 72-46 victory over the Wildcats on Sunday.

LSU coach Van Chancellor said he wasn't surprised Kentucky threw everything -- sometimes as many as four different defenders -- against his star center. He also wasn't surprised that she didn't appear fazed.

"When she brings it like she did tonight, she's hard to guard, I don't care who you are," Chancellor said. "What you saw tonight is what you see every night."

The Wildcats did manage to bother Fowles early on with their defense which was designed to shut her down.

"I can remember going back to the bench after getting frustrated," Fowles said. "Coach chewed me out a little bit. It got me pumped, got me motivated to go back and play."

The Tigers have won their five league games by an average of nearly 26 points and appear to be on a collision course with No. 2 Tennessee on Feb. 14 that could determine SEC supremacy. Chancellor, however, refuses to let his players look ahead -- focusing instead on the next game Thursday against South Carolina.

Kentucky (10-10, 4-2) could have moved into a tie with the Tigers for second place with a victory but was thoroughly overmatched.

"Just real disappointed," Kentucky coach Matthew Mitchell said. "A real bad day for us, and we will just have to get better and try to bounce back."

Although not quite as lopsided as LSU's record-setting 53-point blowout against Mississippi State earlier this month, this was the Tigers' second-largest win in league play, and the outcome was never in much doubt.

Kentucky missed its first three shots and had four early turnovers, failing to score until Amber Smith's layup four and a half minutes into the game.

By then, LSU had jumped out to a 12-0 lead, with half of those points coming on consecutive wide-open 3s by Quianna Chaney.

The Tigers would connect on just three more long-range buckets, but wouldn't need them. Not the way Fowles dominated the post, even amid double and triple-teams.

"We jump out of the box scoring and doing everything we have to do to try to make it difficult for them," Fowles said. "That was our game plan and we followed through."

On one possession early in the second half, three Wildcats hovered beneath the basket looking to rebound an LSU miss. Fowles jumped higher than them all, grabbing the ball with her left hand and tossing back an easy layup.

Fowles made nine of 11 shots from the field, and she proved too much to handle for Kentucky's tallest player, 6-foot-6 senior Sarah Elliott, who picked up her fourth foul with eight minutes left.

"We were well aware not one person could guard her all night," Elliott said. "That's why she's an All-American. She never stops trucking."

Elliott was more of a force on offense, leading Kentucky with 17 points.

The Wildcats' outside shooting wasn't much better as they connected on just one of eight 3-point attempts. That was by star guard Samantha Mahoney, who made just two of 12 shots from the field, finishing with 12 points.

Chaney (13) and Allison Hightower (12) joined Fowles as double-digit scorers for the Tigers.

Kentucky's only modest run came midway through the first half to cut the deficit to 14-8. The Wildcats would get no closer as LSU stormed into halftime on a 14-3 run, putting them ahead 41-23.

“We are really happy to win this game,” UK Coach Matthew Mitchell said. “We struggled to separate ourselves from South Carolina but this was a physical, hard-fought game. It wasn’t pretty but we found a way to win.”

The Wildcats (10-9, 4-1 Southeastern Conference) led by as many as 11 points with 10 minutes remaining in the second half after back-to-back three-pointers from Franklin and Mahoney. USC (11-8, 0-4 SEC) continued to fight back, clawing within four points, 53-49, with 8:41 to go. UK extended its lead back to nine late in the game (60-51) before the Gamecocks used an 8-0 run to cut the lead to one, 60-59 with 1:32 remaining. An offensive rebound and put-back by senior Sarah Elliott (McKee, Ky.), gave the Cats a four-point advantage (63-59) lead with 1:19 to go.

“I’ve said this before that our non-conference schedule helped prepare us for games like this,” Mitchell said. “We have been in these close situations so many times this season and we felt confident at the end of the game that we would win. I’m just so proud of this team and their grit down the stretch.”

Senior Chelsea Chowning (Berea, Ky.) was fouled with :26 seconds to go but missed both free throws attempts. However, on her second attempt and with only South Carolina players lined up to rebound, Chowning grabbed her own miss and was fouled again. This time she hit both shots to give the Wildcats a four-point lead, 65-59. The Gamecocks would not go away, however, as USC’s Brionna Dickerson hit a three-pointer with 15.1 seconds left in the game, cutting the lead to three, 65-62. USC’s final three-point attempt with :05.4 seconds was off the mark and senior Chante Bowman was fouled on the rebound. She hit 1-of-2 with 02.9 left to give the Cats their final 66-62 win. A total of 50 fouls were called in the game.

Twelve of 19 games this season have been decided by 10 points or less and UK now holds a 7-5 record in those games. Six games have been by five points or less and the Wildcats are 3-3 in those games.

Red-shirt junior Eleia Roddy played a season-high 17 minutes in the game and led UK on the boards with seven. The Wildcats were outrebounded for the first time in three games, 40-37. Seniors Elliott and Samantha Mahoney (Detroit) scored six and eight points, respectively.

The Wildcats, who start SEC play at 4-1 in the SEC for the first time since the 2005-06 season, hit 18-of-28 free throws and scored 16 points off 20 Gamecock turnovers.

Freshman Jordan Jones led USC with 16 points. Ilona Burgrova and Demetress Adams followed with 15 and 11 points, respectively.

The first half was a sloppy, see-saw affair as both teams recorded double-digit turnovers, including 16 from South Carolina. The teams shot evenly from the field at 33.3 percent (8-of-24) but Kentucky protected its lead by hitting 8-of-11 free throws in the first half. Franklin led all scorers with 13 points. UK’s largest lead was five and the Cats led 26-23 at intermission. Five other Wildcats combined for 15 points. UK leading scorers Elliott and Mahoney combined for just five points and two rebounds in the first half. The Gamecocks controlled the boards in the first half, 21-13.

UK now leads the all-time series over USC 26-14. This is the first of two meetings with the Gamecocks this season as UK also will play host to USC on March 2 in Rupp Arena.

The Wildcats return home for their next game Sunday, Jan. 27 in Rupp Arena. Join the UK Hoops team as they “Pack the House” against No. 9 LSU. Go to click here to receive general admission seating for just $1! Coupons must be redeemed at Rupp Arena on game day.

“We are all smiles after this one,” UK Coach Matthew Mitchell said. “I thought we finished the game in really fine fashion. I was a bit concerned because we were turning the ball over at a level that I thought would prevent us from winning. We tightened down and had some big stops and some big rebounds there at the end. I am very, very pleased to beat a good Auburn team that we knew was going to be physically challenging today. Their offense is hard to guard. It takes a lot out of you physically to defend. So, I am very proud of our players for another great defensive performance and another win in the Southeastern Conference. We are real happy today.”

In a game that featured 11 ties and 14 lead changes, Kentucky (9-9, 3-1 SEC) trailed by only one point (53-52) with 2:51 remaining to a tough Auburn squad that upset No. 10 Georgia last week, 82-52.

Kentucky native and senior Chelsea Chowning (Berea, Ky.), who played just eight minutes in the game, came off the bench to drain a pivotal three-pointer from the corner with 2:09 to go, giving the Wildcats a 55-53 advantage. Auburn (13-5, 1-2 SEC) answered with two of Sherell Hobbs’ game-high 16 points to tie the game at 55 each with 1:37 left on the clock. From there, Chowning again stepped up big for the Cats, hitting 3-of-4 free-throw attempts. After Auburn head coach Nell Fortner was assessed with a technical foul with :31 seconds to go, Chowning helped put UK up 58-55 by hitting 1-of-2 free throws.

Auburn was forced to foul in the closing seconds and again UK connected at the stripe. Sophomore Amani Franklin (Decatura, Ga.) and freshman Amber Smith (Winter Haven, Fla.) each nailed 2-of-2 tosses to seal the victory. The pair combined to finish 12-of-12 from the charity stripe in the game. All together, UK hit 7-of-8 free throws in the final 1:13.

“I have a lot of confidence in Chowning,” Mitchell said. “I had a lot of confidence that she was going to get in there and compete. That was one thing I thought she could do. She could help us win games because she can make open shots and the one she had was a mighty big one and a key to getting us back in the game.”

Senior Sarah Elliott (Berea, Ky.) led UK with 14 points, including eight in the first half. She also grabbed seven rebounds. Senior guard Samantha Mahoney followed with 12 points for the second straight game. Franklin and Smith added 13 and 11 points, respectively. Smith pulled down a game and career-high nine rebounds while dishing out four assists.

Kentucky outrebounded its second consecutive opponent, owning the boards against Auburn 44-34. UK also outrebounded No. 2 Tennessee, 36-28, on Thursday night. UK’s defense held the Tigers to just 34.8 percent shooting (24-of-69), including 12.5 percent (1-of-8) from beyond the arc.

“It is one of our keys to win every game in the Southeastern Conference and in order to compete in this conference at a high level, we know we need to rebound at a high level,” Mitchell said. “They continued to work hard and rebounding is a key. To outrebound a fine team like Auburn is something that I am proud of.”

Junior forward DeWanna Bonner, the SEC’s second-leading scorer and rebounder, was held to just eight points and seven rebounds before fouling out with 4:57 left in the game. She came into the game averaging a team-high 17.6 points and 10.2 rebounds.

Kentucky has had 11 games decided by 10 points or less, including seven of the last eight. UK holds a 6-5 record in those contests this season.

Auburn now owns a 23-11 advantage in the all-time series, including a 10-4 lead over Kentucky in Lexington. However, UK has won the last two in a row after defeating the Tigers in Auburn, Ala., last year.

Kentucky returns to action Thursday, Jan. 24, when it travels to Columbia, S.C., to take on the Gamecocks of South Carolina. Tip-off is slated for 7 p.m. EST and it will be carried live on the Big Blue Sports Network (radio) and televised live on FSN South.

It didn't look good early, but things were business as usual in the end for the defending national champion Lady Vols (15-1, 3-0 Southeastern Conference). Same goes for Parker, who Kentucky coach Matthew Mitchell calls the best female player in the country -- college or pros.

Parker made 10 of 14 shots, one below her season-high for baskets in a game. Twice, she put up a highlight-reel left-handed hook shot that the Wildcats' defenders could only watch sail through the net.

The Lady Vols scored just 27 points in the first half -- their lowest total of the season -- but never trailed, largely because Kentucky's shooters were worse.

he Wildcats (8-9, 2-1) connected on 9 of 23 shots in the half, and six of the misses were airballs.

The Wildcats didn't get on the scoreboard until nearly six minutes into the game on a contested layup by Catina Bett. By then, Tennessee had built an 8-0 lead.

Kentucky pulled to within 11-9 with 9:30 left in the half after consecutive driving layups by Amber Smith, but the Lady Vols scored the next six points to pad the lead.

The Wildcats did win the rebounding battle 36-28, welcoming back senior center Sarah Elliott, who had been questionable for the game with a left knee strain. Samantha Mahoney led Kentucky with 12 points.

Tennessee extended its streak to 318 consecutive games with a 3-pointer, albeit barely. The Lady Vols missed their first seven attempts from long range and didn't connect on their lone 3 until Angie Bjorklund made one with under four minutes left.

The last time these teams met in Lexington in 2006, the unranked Wildcats shocked the top-ranked Lady Vols 66-63 at Rupp Arena. Kentucky hasn't beaten Tennessee at Memorial Coliseum, the regular home for the women's team, since 1986.

Mitchell, the first coach to start 2-0 in the SEC in his inaugural season at Kentucky, was handed his first league defeat. Mitchell was a graduate assistant for Lady Vols coach Pat Summitt in 2000.

LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Kentucky's Victoria Dunlap (Nashville, Tenn.) was named the Southeastern Conference's Freshman of the Week for the second time this season after averaging 11.0 points, 8.0 rebounds, and 3.5 blocks in the Wildcats' two league wins last week, the league office in Birmingham, Ala., announced Monday.

Dunlap hit 7-of-8 from the floor vs. Mississippi State to lead UK with her second-best career total with 17 points. She also pulled down a team-best nine rebounds against the Lady Bulldogs, all defensive boards, which set a new career high for the freshman. She grabbed a team-high eight rebounds in UK's 60-58 win over Florida and tied her career-high with three blocks against the Gators. She went on to swat a career-best four blocks against MSU.

Dunlap has started in all 16 games this season at the forward position. Overall, she ranks third on the team in scoring (8.1 points per game) and is tied for first with senior Sarah Elliott (McKee, Ky.) with 6.4 rebounds per game. She also leads the team in steals with 30 on the year.

This is the third year the SEC has recognized a Freshman of the Week award. The weekly award marks UK's fourth SEC Freshman of the Week. Junior Carly Ormerod (Louisville, Ky.) also received the honor twice during the 2005-06 season. Tennessee freshman Angie Bjorklund is the only other rookie in the SEC to receive the honor more than once this season.

Kentucky, which begins 2-0 in SEC play for the second consecutive season, returns to action Thursday, Jan. 17, when it plays host to No. 2/2 Tennessee. Tip-off in Memorial Coliseum is slated for 7 p.m. EST and the game will be carried live on the Big Blue Sports Network (radio) with Neil Price.

A limited number of general admission and reserved tickets are available for $5 adults/$2 senior citizens and children ages 18 and under. UK students, faculty and staff are admitted free with valid identification based on availability. Call the UK ticket office at 859-257-1818 or 1-800-928-CATS (2287) or log on to UKathletics.com for more information.